Heading into this season, there were more question marks on the LA Clippers' roster than fans were used to in previous years. The team's roster certainly changed from year to year during the Kawhi Leonard-Paul George era, but not to the extent we saw this past summer.
After the departure of George to Philadelphia, we saw LA's front office complete a major overhaul that would ultimately accomplish a few things. Number one was bring in new role players that could round out the overall skillset of the team as a whole, and number two was make it a roster that could win basketball games even with its best player sitting on the sideline.
Clearly, the Clippers' management achieved both of those goals in remarkable fashion. LA has been winning with phenomenal defense both at an individual and at a team level, and they have been doing it all while Kawhi Leonard remains resting up due to swelling in his knee. With him missing the entire year so far, new names have stepped up and earned their stripes.
One of those players that has earned their keep is Jordan Miller. Coming into the season operating on a two-way contract (and still playing on a two-way), Miller has already outdone preseason expectations and has shown the coaching staff that he deserves more minutes going forward. On Sunday evening following the win over the Denver Nuggets, Tyronn Lue spoke about Miller's success.
Tyronn Lue on Jordan Miller: "He's earned my trust."
— Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) December 2, 2024
Ty Lue says Jordan Miller has earned his trust
After Miller scored eight points on 4-for-6 shooting in just 15 minutes of action against Nikola Jokic and company, Lue gave the youngster his credit. "He's earned my trust," said the Clippers' coach. In just four words, Lue managed to speak volumes about Miller and just how far he has come.
When he was picked up in the second round of the 2023 NBA draft, there were not much expectations for Miller and his future role on the Clippers. Everyone knew he was going to be a G League prospect that would have a chance of earning NBA minutes at some point, but that chance was admittedly pretty low. Even so, hopes for him began increasing when he dominated Summer League this past offseason, earning First Team All-Summer League honors.
Those hopes rose even higher among Clipper nation when Ty Lue spoke about how Miller had impressed he and his staff during preseason, saying Jordan had proven he was an NBA player. But the question about him earning legitimate minutes in the regular season was still up in the air.
Now, it seems that question has been answered as well. Earning your coach's trust is something that players cannot cut corners on, and Miller has done everything the right way en route to potentially becoming a real wing option for the Clippers the rest of the way this season.